Imperial Mining Company.

The Imperial Mining Company began life as the A.D. Monroe & Bilberg & Thennis Mining Company, founded in 1904 and named for its directors. The name change came in late 1906, although directorship remained constant. In 1908 Imperial Mining was working on the Tiger-Poorman vein, in its Timber Queen claim, east of Burke, Idaho. Ill-equipped for extensive efforts at the Timber Queen claim, the company contracted another ADM & B & T enterprise, the Imperial Development Syndicate, to develop it. As the work progressed, Imperial Mining bought up the Imperial Development Syndicate. The claim yielded ore that was 43 to 48 percent lead. This rich ore ran out in 1915, but work at the site continued.

From 1924 to 1936 the company survived by levying assessments. In 1936 the Hercules Mining Company bought a large majority of the Imperial Stock. In addition, Henry Day, John Wourms, R.W. Anno, Fred Serafin, and S.F. Heitfeld, all Hercules officers, bought up Imperial stock. These men soon took control of the Imperial.

The change in ownership brought no change in productivity. In 1943 the directors proposed selling Imperial to the King Mining Company for 142,439 shares of King's capital stock. Also proposed was an exchange of all Imperial stock certificates for those of the King Mining Company. The directors explained that these actions would eliminate the expense of maintaining the Imperial, now long unprofitable. On May 31, 1944 all assets of the Imperial Mining Company were sold and the corporation dissolved.

From the guide to the Records, 1904-1945, (University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives)